Grin lenses made by 3d printing monomer-based inks

Abstract

A curable, optical ink comprises first and second monomer monomers. The first monomer is photopolymerizable over a first wavelength band. The multifunctional second monomer is photopolymerizable over a second wavelength band, which is distinct from the first wavelength band.

1 . A curable, optical ink comprising:
 a first monomer photopolymerizable over a first wavelength band; and   a multifunctional second monomer photopolymerizable over a second wavelength band distinct from the first wavelength band.   
     
     
         2 . The ink of  claim 1  wherein the first wavelength band is an infrared band. 
     
     
         3 . The ink of  claim 1  wherein the second wavelength band is an infrared band. 
     
     
         4 . The ink of  claim 1  wherein the first or second wavelength band is an ultraviolet band. 
     
     
         5 . The ink of  claim 1  further comprising a multifunctional third monomer. 
     
     
         6 . The ink of  claim 5  wherein the second and third monomers have different refractive indices. 
     
     
         7 . The ink of  claim 1  wherein the second monomer comprises: 
       
         
           
           
               
               
           
         
         where X═O, S, or NH; Y═H or a halogen; Z═H, a halogen, phenyl, or alkyl group; and m and n are integers greater than zero. 
       
     
     
         8 . The ink of  claim 1  wherein the second monomer comprises: 
       
         
           
           
               
               
           
         
         where n is an integer greater than zero. 
       
     
     
         9 . The ink of  claim 1  wherein the first monomer includes a monoacrylate. 
     
     
         10 . The ink of  claim 1  wherein the first monomer includes benzyl acrylate (BA), benzyl methacrylate (BMA), 2-(phenylthio)ethyl acrylate (2-PTEA), or benzenethiol methacrylate (BTM). 
     
     
         11 . The ink matrix of  claim 1  further comprising a loading nanoparticles. 
     
     
         12 . A method of manufacture of a gradient refractive-index (GRIN) optical device via 3D printing, the method comprising:
 determining a target difference in refractive index spectra for two or more different inks to be used to manufacture the optical device;   determining desired rheological properties of the two or more different inks;   selecting two or more multifunctional monomers for the two or more different inks based on the target difference;   determining whether additives are required in the two or more different inks in order to achieve the target difference;   optimizing deposition and curing of the two or more different inks based on printing and rheological properties of the two or more different inks with the additives required; and   printing the optical device.   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , where cured-polymer nanoparticle additives, comprising one or more selected monomers, are dispersed within a given ink so that the nanoparticle loading densities and uncured-monomer contents of the two or more different inks are convergent. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 12 , further comprising measuring properties of the optical device and adjusting the deposition and curing to optimize the method. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein a pattern of depositing a droplet of a given ink is determined, at least in part, by rheological properties of the two or more different inks. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the two or more different inks are deposited in patterns based on an error diffusion algorithm, performed using kernels that span two or more dimensions of the optical device, and defined, at least in part, by the rheological properties of the two or more different inks. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the two or more different inks include three or more inks deposited in different densities and caused to interdiffuse, such that within the optical device there exist two or more gradient index profiles with respect to dispersion or partial dispersion. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the two or more different inks include three or more inks deposited in different densities and caused to interdiffuse, such that within the optical device there exist two or more gradient index profiles with respect to dispersion, and after fabrication a surface of the optical device is shaped in proportion to at least one of the gradient index profiles.